Lifting device



G. M. FRENCH AND W. ,PAVEY.

LIFTING DEVICE.

y APPLICATION FILED AUG.3, 19,18 Patented Aug. 10

2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

G. III. FRENCH AND w. B. PAI/EY.

LIFTING DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED Aue.3. 1918.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

UNITED STATES raraur OFFICE.

GEORGE M. FRENCH AND WILLIAM B. .PAVETC OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS 0F CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A

ECONOMY VENGrINEERING COMPANY, ILLINOIS.

CORPORATION or LIFTING DEVICE.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that we, Grenen M. FnnNoii and l/l/ILLIAM B. Piivnr, lcitizens of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and Stateof Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Lifting Devices, of which the following is a specification.

The invention relates to lifting devices of the type especially adapted for use` in stacking heavy boxes and like articles;- and the general object of the invention is to provide an improved platform for a lifting device of the character stated, which will facilitate the loading and unloading of -articles onto and olf from the platform.

A more specic object of the invention is to provide a platformwhich will enable the easy movement of an article onto the platform in one direction when the platform is in one position, or off from the platform in another direction transverse to the first, when the platform is in another position.

rI'he objects of the invention thus generally stated are attained by providing the platform with one set of stationarily mounted rollers and one or more sets of movably mounted rollers disposed at substantially right angles to the first mentioned set of rollers and movable vertically to po sitioii in which their upper surfaces are above or below the upper surfaces of the stationary rollers.y

In the accompanying drawings, wherein we have illustrated ay preferred embodiment of our invention, Figure 1 is a fragmentary side elevation ofa portion of a tiering maf chine or stacker to which the invention is applied, the movably mounted rollers being shown in their uppermost position. Fig. 2 is a horizontal sectional view taken in the plane of line 2-2 of Fig. 1. Fig.- 3 is a vertical, sectional view taken on line `SWB of Fig. 2. Fig. 4l is a verticalsectional view taken on line tt of F ig. 2. Fig. 5 is a View similar to Fig. 4L, but showing the platform elevated, with the movably mounted rollers in their lowerinost position.

In the drawings, 1 indicates the `main frame of a tiering machine mounted upon rollers 2 and legs 9.EL and having an upright portion or guide frame 3. 4 is a platform extending forwardly fromV the lower end of a frame 5, which latter is movable vertically relative to the guide frame 3; while Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Aug-f 10 1920 Application filed August 3, 1918. Serial No. 248,098.

6 indicates a set of mounted upon the platform, and 7 are rollers movably mounted upon the platform at right angles to the rollers 6.

The main frame 1 is preferably rectangular in form, and the opposite side rails 8 thereof are formed of angle bars disposed s0 I thatv their angles open outwardly and downwardly. Beneath the horizontal -portions or ledges of said bars, atitlie -forward ends thereof, the rollers 2 are mounted in suitable brackets 9, and at the rear ends thereof the legs 2a are secured. l

The guide frame l3 is located at the rear portion of the ina-in frame 1 and .mayV coinprise a pair of upright channel bars l0 secured to the inner sides of the rails 8, and connected by means of cross bars l1. Gusset plates 12 are also preferably employed to brace the bars 10 relative to the base. l The channels of the bars 10 open inwardly to form vertical guide-ways for rollers 13 carried by frame preferablycomprises a pair of upright channel bars 14C connected together by means of cross bars 15, with their channels opening inwardly. The rollers 18 are suitably mounted upon thelouter faces of said upright bars 14E, two rollers being preferably employed for each bar, at opposite ends thereof, and preferably said rollers are provided with flanges at their ends adjacent the bars 14 adaptedto enage with the inner edges of the bars 10,so as to provide' a slight space between said bars 10 and 14:.

At their lower yends the upright bars 14 of the guide frame have secured thereto the rear ends of a pair of forwardly extending arms 16 for carryingv the platform As shown in Fig. 3, said arms are secured to the outer faces of the bars la, and angle bars 17 are preferably employed to assist in rigidly supporting said arms.

The platform et comprises albase 18 which may be made of wood and mounted in a suitable way upon the arms 16. Upon its I forward and rear ends said base is provided ASSIGNORS T0 rollers stationarily i the movable frame 5,. Saidk Vplatform approaches the latter located one at each side edge of the platform between the outermost pairs of rollers 6.

The rollers 6' and 7 may be made tubular inform and mounted, by means of. bearing bushings 21 fixed therein, on bearing rodsV yor shafts 22.- The opposite ends. of the shafts 22 of the rollers 6 are mounted inthe bearing brackets19'at the forward and rear edges of the platform, `while the shafts` 22 of the rollers 7 are mounted in their brackets 20. The brackets 19 may be secured together 4 by means of longitudinal bars 23, and the latter are connectedby means of diagonal bars 2A. Thus a rigid frame is provided for supporting the rollers 6. v

The brackets 20 for the rollers 7 are preferably in the form of channel bars, and the rollers are made ofa length to -fit neatly between the uprightwalls of the channels with the ends of their shafts22 fixedin said walls. Normally said brackets are arranged A torest at their opposite ends upon the horizontal portionsof the brackets 19 upon the base 18, and the parts are soproportioned and arranged that in this position of 'the brackets 2O (F ig. 5) the upper surfaces of the vrollers7 lie in a plane below the upper surfaces ofthe rollers 6l VlVhen, however,

the. platform is lowered into position upon the base-1,(Figs-1, 3 and A) the rollers 7 are held with their upper surfaces in a plane above the upper surfaces of the rollers 6.

To this end, the brackets 2O for the rollers 7 `are provided on their under surfaces with a plurality of abutting members 25 in the form of angle'irons, each having an upright portion depending through a vertical slot 26 (Fig) in the base 16, and arranged to engage with the main frame 1 when the near the end of its downward movement. wWhen the Vmembers 2 5 thus engage with the, main frame, downward movement of the brackets 2O and thereby of the rollers 7 is stopped, while the base 18 of the platform, and the rollers 6A thereon, continue to descend into position l. upon the main frame. Preferably stop members 27 fare provided on said mainV frame to cooperate with the members 25.

Said membersV 27 are lin the form of angle irons secured to the inner side faces of the side rails Softhe frame, and correspond in number to the number of the abutting members 2,5V carried by the brackets 20.

It will be seen that when the platform is in its lowermost position, the rollers 7 will Vbe held elevated by the members2 resting the abuttingv members 25y operating in the slots 26, drop into their lowermost position upon the horizontal portions of the brackets 19, with the upper surfaces ofthe rollers 7 below the bearing surfaces of therollers 6. Therefore, when the platform comes to rest at the desired point in its upward movement,

the boX 00 may be readily rolled uponthe rollers 6 from off the platform onto'a tieror stack of boXesor other desired support,

' or from such a support onto the platform.

It will be understood `that any s uitableV means may be employed for raising and lowering the platform et, no such means be-` ing herein shown. lt will also be understood that, while we have illustratedand described the invention with considerable particularity, we do not intend to belimited to theconstruction and arrangement'set forth except as maybe necessitated by the state of the prior art, A v

7e claim as our invention:

'1.A lifting device having, in combination, a stationary frame, a platform mounted for vertical movement relative to said frame and havinga base with vertical slots therein, a pair of bearing bars fixedon said base, a plurality of rollers supported by said bars, a pair of bearing brackets having depending members arranged to protrude through the slots inthe base, rollers carried by said brackets, and means on the main frame arranged to coperatefwith said depending members o fI the bearing brackets when the platformis in its lowermost position to support the rollers on saidbrackets with their upper surfaces above the upper surfaces of the stationarily mounted rollers.

2. A lifting device having, in combination, a stationary frame having a pair of upright guides, a platform mounted for vertical movement relative` to said guides, a pair of bearing bars fixedV aty two opposite edges of the platform, a plurality of rollers supported by said bars, and a pair of bearing brackets movably mounted on the platform at the other two opposite edgesk thereof and each carrying a plurality of rollers disposed in a plane substantially at right angles to the first mentioned rollers, Asaid brackets having depending members arranged to engage with the base to elevate the,

bracketsk and their rollers when the platarranged to engage with the main frame to elevate the last named rollers when the platform is in its lowermost position.

4:. In combination with a lifting device having a stationary frame, a vertically movable platform having a pair of bearing bars fixed thereon and a set of rollers station- Y arily mounted in said bars, a second set of rollers, means for movably supporting said second set of rollers upon said platform transversel of the first set and with their upper sur aces normally below the upper surfaces of said rst set, and means cooperating with said frame for elevating said supporting means and the rollers carried thereby as the platform moves into its lowermost position.

5. In combination with a lifting device, a vertically movable platform, a plurality of rollers stationarily mounted on said platform, a second set of rollers, means for supporting said second set of rollers transversely of the first mentioned rollers and for vertical movement relative thereto, and means for causing a vertical movement'of said supporting means and the rollers carried thereby when the platform reaches the end of its movement in one direction.

6. A vertically ymovable platform having, in combination, a base, two bearing bars mounted on the base, a plurality of rollers supported by said bars, a channel bar mounted between two of said rollers and having a plurality of rollers disposed in a plane transversely of the first mentioned rollers, and means for automatically moving the channel bar in the movement of the platform to carry the upper surfaces of the rollers thereon above the upper surfaces of the rollers carried by said bearing bars.

7 A vertically movable platform having, in combination, a base and two sets of rollers mounted on the base, the rollers of one set being mounted for vertical movement relative to the rollers of the other set, and means for automatically moving the first mentioned rollers in the movement of the platform whereby to carry the uppermost surfaces thereof above or below the uppermost surfaces of the second mentioned rollers, said movable rollers being adapted when in their uppermost position to support an article for movement in a direction transverse to the direction of movement of the article upon the other rollers.

8. In combination with a base, a platform upon said base movable up and down relative thereto and having two sets of rollers thereon, the rollers of one set being angularly disposed and movable vertically with reference to the rollers of the other set, and means acting between said platform and base to effect the vertical movement of said movable rollers.

In testimony whereof we have hereunto set our hands.

GEORGE M. FRENCH. WILLIAM B. PAVEY. 

